Martha Taumata Faavae
Last week was not good business for many in the fishing community forced to weigh anchor in bad weather.
Fishing out in the open sea in rough weather was a risk the fishing fleet did not want to take. Staying home safe and dry affected the supply of fish and the earnings for the fishermen.
One of the fishing boat operators Simeona Tonu’u told Newsline that his family boats did not want to chance the bad weather last week.
The Meteorology Division of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment MNRE issued warning notices of severe weather and sea conditions for the countrythroughout last week .
“ We had to abide by these notices,” Tonuu said. He learned his lesson the hard way when the last time he ignored them turnout bad.
“ Our boat narrowly escaped disaster out in the deep ocean.”
With the boats kept out of harms way the fish community struggled to meet regular demands from the public and the restaurants Tonu’u pointed out.
“ We also tried to cater to the needs of events such as the opening of churches and schools.”
The demand for fish at this time of the year is usually high with the start of the 40 day period Lent before Easter.
Lent is celebrated by the members of the Catholic Church in Samoa and throughout the world by fasting.
No red meat allowed except for fish on the dinning table.
Lent therefore is one of the periods in which fishermen look forward in earning good money Tonu’u explained.
During this time the demand for fish is high. This extra demand is in addition to the regular daily need of other members of the public. “ During this period earnings are usually good and the fishermen find it hard to meet the needs of the people who flock to buy the fish. Money is good during this period with the members of the Catholic Church marking Lent and the demand from the restaurants, ”Tonu’u explained.
Tonu’u however laments that if the bad weather persists the fishermen will continue to be impacted upon negatively and this is not a normal situation at this time of the year in comparison to the past two years. “The weather has been unusually abnormal this year. Climate change is happening at a very fast pace,” Tonu’u said.
Concern over the inability of the fishing boats to go out fishing was also voiced by Elima Esera of Fugalei. Mrs Esera’s family also operates fishing boats. She has resigned to that the boats could not risk going out during bad weather.
“ There is nothing we can do about this,” Esera told Newsline. She however feels for their workers for they depend for their earnings from the boats’ catch. “ But we cannot risk lives. Lives are important. We really feel for them. We will send out the boats once the weather is clear.”
She confirms that the period of the Lent is very profitable for the fishermen and at the same time caters for the regular consumers of fish.
Esera said that they are living on their savings and assistance from families overseas.
The Meteorology Division in Public marine and Severe Weather Notice circulated yesterday said that heavy rain and flood remain valid for the whole country and that a convergence zone remains to the south of Samoa providing unstable weather conditions to persist over the islands.” The system continues to bring periods of rain with brief heavy falls, gusty winds and possible thunderstorm for today. The notice also cancelled the wind advisory and marine advisory.